1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electromagnetic relay which opens and closes an electric circuit.
2. Description of Related Art
According to a conventional electromagnetic relay described in the publication JP-A-2005-203290, a fixed contact is positioned and held at a predetermined position by a fixed contact holding member, and the moving contact is engaged with or disengaged from the fixed contact by driving a moving member, on which a moving contact is attached, by electromagnetic force of a magnet coil. As a result, the conventional relay opens or closes an electric circuit. Furthermore, an accommodating space in a housing, in which components such as the magnet coil are arranged, communicates with an exterior space of the housing through a breathing hole.
However, when the conventional electromagnetic relay having the breathing hole is used under an environment in which flammable gas is generated, flammable gas flows into the accommodating space through the breathing hole, and the flammable gas which has flowed into the accommodating space is ignited by arc generated between the moving contact and the fixed contact. If the ignited flame propagates to the exterior space of the housing through the breathing hole, flammable gas that exists in the exterior space of the housing may catch fire from the flame.